I have had many Mentors in my life. One was my grandfather. He was always talking about the difference between right and wrong and how important it was to do what was right. He displayed this in every thing he did, he led by example.
I also had other mentors that I worked with when first starting in my carreer as an automechanic. They were always ready to lend a hand and show me the way.Not only did I learn tasks, but I also learned what teamwork was all about.
I pass these things on to my students and show them the importance of doing whats right and being ready to help others and work as a team. That is true success.
I hade a teacher in shop class that lived what he spoke, that set a standard for all off us to live by in that class. That was a goal I set for myself, I believe that students have a hard problem responding to an instructor that does'nt practice what he preaches.
In college I had a professor come and watch my football games. He always expressed in interest in what I was doing in and out of school. He made me feel special. I try to go out of my way and make several students feel that way while they are attending school. I wish I had more time in the day to devote time to this. I really think it’s beneficial.
Nothing beats a positive attitude. Your Uncle was your Mentor.
I began automotive school and did not put out the effort that I could have. My first instructor saw potential and took me under his wing. He opened my eyes and I realized that he was right. When he left the teaching profession to open his own auto shop, he asked me to work for him part time after school. I will never forget how much he influenced my life and career. Look at me now, I am an instructor doing the same thing.
Christy,
Do you beleive your high school art teacher and had a continued impact on you over the years? We all mentor to our students, however we sometimes don't realize the impact we have until later in life. Thanks for sharing this great story.
David,
This is a great explanation of a mentor and an intelligent heart.
Michael,
That is great that your professor went out of his way. However, just asking about a student's family is more attention than they receive on a daily basis.
Stan,
Great example. Sharing this story with students can have a great impact on their beliefs of their potential.
At significant points in my life a mentor has had impact. When I look back at these experiences I can see that I observed the mentor, but really valued the discussions about what I saw. Understanding what you see is important because perception is not always right. I was grateful that my mentor took the time to discuss with me what I was seeing. These were often moments that helped me form a philosophical base from which to conduct myself in the field of education.
Lucy
It is wonderful to hear that your mentors came from different places. I can understand the influence of your grandfather. My father was a mentor in many ways to me because one thing I was sure of is what he stood for. His values and principles were clear and he did not sent mixed messages. I have come to appreciate how important it is to be clear to everyone as to who you are and what you stand for. It makes decision-making easier and it tells students, employees, and such what type of person you are. Students know if you are not what you seem to be.
I think we all may have had an uncle like that, or relative. Following after their footsteps can only lead to success. And value, a perfect word to describe the things like positive attitudes and optimism that we emulate in our everyday lives. I am sure your Uncle would agree.
My greatest mentor was my first boss. The technical information he taught was the greatest asset I carrried throughout my career. Now I get to pass that knowledge onto my students.
I like to watch other instructors so i can apply there good points to my teaching style.
Lucy,
You made a very important point in your post. Understanding perception is very important because as you said it is not always right. You were very fortunate to have a mentor who took the time to discuss your perception of events.
Remembering how former teachers or instructors handled different situations, or how they interacted with different types of personalities served as a basis for my own strategy in dealing with similiar situations.
John,
A great point about your grandfather is that he lead by example, he modeled the behavior. We can always mentor to students and others, but if we do not model the behavior we may lead them in the opposite direction of our mentoring.
Steve,
Practicing what you preach, or modeling what you mentor is very important.
Matthew,
This is a great way to develop your own strategy. We can learn a lot from both the positive and negative teachers and mentors in our past.
I have had many people though out my life that i have learned from When i am teaching I try to use different things that i have learned from them and as such have many types of teaching methods depending on the student and their needs
